Women Reservation Bill to cater to affluent class: Mulayam

Barabanki (UP): Expressing scepticism over the long pending Women Reservation Bill, SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Thursday claimed if the Bill is passed, women belonging to the affluent class will march ahead while those from poor background will be further pushed back.

Speaking at a function here, Yadav said: "With it (Bill) coming into effect women belonging to the affluent class would march ahead while those of the poor sections would be further pushed behind."

The Bill, proposing 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, was passed by the Rajya Sabha in 2010. SP, RJD and JD(U) are opposed to the bill.

Yadav also slammed the UPA government`s move of inviting FDI into multi-brand retail, saying, "it would have a bad impact on small traders."

Though FDI is being projected as growth oriented, the reality is that it would have a very negative impact on small traders and some "five crore people would lose their livelihood."

The SP chief said that Central government wanted to somehow bring FDI "under foreign pressure".

Expressing concern over shrinking cultivable area, he said that if not checked soon it could pose a "serious danger" before the country in future.

"With this in mind our government had constituted bhoomi sena in 1990 to identify 35 thousand acres of barren and other land on the river side which could be used," the SP supremo said.